That Which Prolonging Disfigures, Exertion Deranges (Reprise)

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The group will discuss a section of Zhuangzi; reading beforehand is recommended but not required.

AI summary · From the event listing

We will continue our journey through the Chinese philosophical work *Zhuangzi*. We will discuss "Section 4: In the World of Men". If you missed any previous meetings, it doesn't matter. The passages are stand-alone and disjoint. We did not discuss the second part of the reading, so when we meet together, I will focus more on the part starting with "Tzu-kao, duke of She..." and continuing to the end. It's ok if you did not attend the first part, as we will review it. In this section, inquiries for advice on how to be successful at specific tasks are journeys to exhibition of Dao (The Way). As is usual for Zhuangzi, all paths lead to the same destination; the prescription for success in strikingly variegated tasks is the same for all of them. But how is it possible for there to be a single answer to being successful at apparently unrelated tasks? Quite simply, Dao binds them. Thus, yielding to Dao dislodges skill at being skilled – success at being successful. This is a sort of skill at the meta-level, or "metaskill", if you will. This idea is not as foreign as it seems, for prudence is a well-known Platonic virtue that shares this property. Prudence is a virtue that contributes to success in what appears to be unrelated instances of its application. This is why prudence is said to be the "crown" or "mother" of the virtues in Aristotelian and Thomistic tradition. The reading is short. It is highly recommended to read these sections before we meet but not required.

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